Heat treating chert with fire, (another thought)

[iowabow]

Quartz can fool ya sometimes and look like burlington. On more than one rock hunt I picked up quartz thinking it was high grade stuff...now I can spot it a little better.

[RickB]

Thanks for the videos and photos John. In response to the comment below: I collected some projectile points in the 1960's-70's that looked like quartz to me at the time. Upon further inspection years later, I realized that some were made out of a heat treated white translucent chert from the Savannah River area. Some chert can fool you sometimes and look like quartz. Rick B

"Quartz can fool ya sometimes and look like burlington."

[iowabow]

What I am about to tell you is odd and raises even more question. My pit is now reading 515 which means it rose 85 degrees since 5:30am and it is 4:30pm.

So the graph would look like a wave and be functioning unlike a kiln. This is only if the fire was left alone the way I fired my pit. The way I have it figured the fire created unburnt charcoal that is now recieving oxygen and burning hotter than the logs would burn because the charcoal is now very pure burning and very hot this heat is now closer to the chert at this point. So unless you remove all of the fuel after firing this process might repeat in another experiment.  So this would suggest that primitive chert firing was fired differently than how the modern knapper heat treats chert today and that includes me. Does this make a difference? I dont have a clue but if you knap you gotta find this interesting!

[iowabow]

Here are a couple pic. Also everyone should understand this is only one firing and needs to be done many times to have solid data but what I am finding is very interesting if it repeats. Below are pictures of the pyrometer and what the fire pit looks like now.

[iowabow]

Sitting at 500 degrees photo of chart below

[iowabow]

This is about 24 hours at 500 since wood was added to the fire.  This is crazy.

[bowtarist]

Cool! I got to watch em. Hope you post pics and written info and not just vids tomorrow after the uncovering.  I won't be back here til Sunday. Cool Stuff John, dpg

[twisted hickory]

Good stuff indeed. Thanks much for the information
 

[iowabow]

Im truely without words as of 8:39pm it reads 501 degrees. I never would have guess this would happen!

[iowabow]

Ok I would be doubting this post based on my pit firing experence and wood firing. I am telling you guys this is real no kidding around on this test. I just went out to check and it is 503 the time here 9:39pm I am going to stay up as long as I can recording but this is unreal. Before I take the flakes out I will record fire size and depth of sand again. I think we need to have more info to reproduce this kind of high quality heat control.

[iowabow]

Forgot to add I did not beleive the pyrometer so I put my hand over the fire and it is hot.

[JW_Halverson]

Forgot to add I did not beleive the pyrometer so I put my hand over the fire and it is hot.

Bust out the Hersheys bars, graham crackers, and marshmallows...it's s'mores time!

S'mores and burlington chert!

[iowabow]

10:30pm

[iowabow]

I have a surface temp reader and it sees 187. So I do believe that below the ash it could be 500 degrees.

[iowabow]

11:17 ...508 degrees